NOVEL NEXT Chapter 76: Target – Myoboku Mountain!
The shinobi of Hidden Waterfall Village were in a panic.
Facing two tailed beasts at the same time, without a strong leader to rally them, their slaughter was inevitable.
Some stubborn ones still tried to gather numbers to block the beasts.
But their attacks against the tailed beasts were like scratching an itch—completely useless.
Soon, no one could muster the will to resist; they all bolted in a desperate attempt to flee.
Mabui understood the situation perfectly.
With so many of them, they could theoretically take down the two beasts if they fought together.
But she dared not give that order.
After all, Uchiha Kaede was still floating up there in the sky.
Against tailed beasts, they might stand a chance. Against Uchiha Kaede? That was true hopelessness.
If these two beasts were defeated, Kaede would personally wipe out every last one of them.
At that point, not a single one of them would survive.
With a pained look at the shinobi forced into a death charge, Mabui turned away and chose to retreat.
"The fall of a great ninja village…"
Kaede gave a faint smile.
Looking at the few Cloud shinobi already far away, he murmured,
"The rest of you—live on as the Uchiha's whetstones."
Without decisive strongmen, even if Kaede himself didn't act, the Hidden Cloud would never again match the power of his forces.
And Kaede's clansmen would always need battles to grow stronger. They'd serve perfectly as sharpening tools.
Ignoring the slaughter below, Kaede's figure vanished.
It was time to deal with Killer B.
Elsewhere…
Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Mifune led their forces, relentlessly pursuing the Konoha shinobi.
Those Konoha ninja thought about resisting, but faced with three Kage-level opponents, their ranks crumbled after only moments of fighting.
By the time they barely escaped back into the Land of Fire, fewer than twenty thousand remained.
Only then did Tsunade halt the chase.
Casting a deep glance toward the Land of Fire, she waved her hand.
"Let's return."
The final eradication of Konoha would come only when Kaede ordered it.
Tsunade knew Kaede's resentment toward Konoha—he would never let it be erased so easily.
Beyond having her, the Hokage, lead the attack, Kaede had another piece in play: Naruto.
For now, Naruto was still in training.
Kaede intended for Konoha to fall at the hands of both her, the Hokage, and Naruto, the Fourth's son.
Killing the body was one thing—killing the spirit was far more devastating.
Meanwhile, the surviving Konoha ninja felt as if they could finally breathe again.
And then came the flood of vented hatred.
"Damn it! That woman Tsunade actually betrayed us to join Kaede and his lot!"
"She's unworthy to be the First Hokage's granddaughter—unworthy to be our Hokage!"
"If I ever get the chance, I'll make her suffer the most painful tortures!"
"And that demon fox brat—he's the shame of Konoha!"
"What did we ever do to them to deserve such revenge?"
…
They didn't know that every word was clearly heard by Tsunade in Sage Mode.
Shaking her head in disappointment, Tsunade murmured, "Konoha really is rotten to the core…"
"These people had the chance to fight back—if only a few hundred had stepped forward to resist, things wouldn't have come to this."
"But instead, they stand here spouting curses to vent their anger."
Orochimaru smirked. "All trained by our 'good teacher.'"
Tsunade waved irritably and led the forces away.
She had already shown mercy in the pursuit—her grudge was only against Hiruzen Sarutobi and his circle, not against the clueless masses.
But now… their behavior left her disappointed.
Konoha's decay ran all the way to its roots.
…
Kaede returned to the Hidden Waterfall Village carrying Killer B, tossing him beneath the God Tree.
Activating his ocular power, he entered B's inner world to face the Eight-Tails.
The beast immediately sat up in alertness.
Kaede gave a faint smile. "Gyūki, Eight-Tails—submit to me, and I will grant you freedom."
The Eight-Tails answered warily, "No need. I'm fine where I am."
Freedom from a master like Kaede would come at a heavy price—Killer B would die.
Kaede chuckled coldly. "So you really do think of that big fool B as a friend."
The beast stayed silent, uncertain of Kaede's true purpose.
But the presence of that divine tree outside made its heart uneasy.
This man… could it be that he intended…?
Kaede had no interest in further talk.
"In that case, I'll just seal you and tame you slowly."
He withdrew from the inner world.
Outside, without hesitation, Kaede slammed his palm onto Killer B's stomach.
"Release the seal!"
Instantly, the sealing marks restraining the Eight-Tails began to dissolve.
In the next moment, Kaede pulled violently—before their eyes, the Eight-Tails was forcibly dragged out of Killer B's body.
The searing pain jolted B awake.
"You… what are you doing?!"
Kaede ignored him, pulling harder until the beast was fully extracted.
B's life force immediately began to fade.
Kaede gave the dying jinchūriki a cold glance. "Stay put."
Then his eyes turned to the Eight-Tails in its true form.
"Rrraaaahh… Kaede…"
The beast gave a grief-stricken look toward Killer B—over the years, they had formed a true bond.
Floating upward, Kaede met its furious gaze.
"War is cruel. The weak have no voice."
"Since you refuse to cooperate, you will sleep forever in illusion."
Mangekyō Sharingan spun to life. With one glance, the Eight-Tails was trapped in a genjutsu world.
When it was done, Kaede closed his eyes and murmured, "Five more to go…"
He left B's corpse where it lay—someone from the village would clean it up.
Placing the Eight-Tails beneath the God Tree, Kaede opened a space-time portal with satisfaction.
One step forward—
Next target: Mount Myōboku.
It was time for those toads to pay the snakes of Ryūchi Cave a visit.
…
On Mount Myōboku, the Great Toad Sage suddenly opened his eyes.
Fukasaku and Shima, who were tending to Jiraiya's injuries, looked up in surprise.
"What is it, Great Toad Sage? Another vision of the future?"
Jiraiya also turned to him.
The Great Toad Sage shook his head slowly.
"That Uchiha Kaede you spoke of… has come to Mount Myōboku."
Jiraiya, Fukasaku, and Shima's faces changed instantly.
"How…? Without our guidance, he shouldn't be able to find this place."
The Great Toad Sage gave no explanation, instead fixing his gaze on Jiraiya.
Moments ago, he had caught a fleeting glimpse of the future.
"Return to Konoha. If I cannot stop him… then only you and Naruto remain."
Rumble…!
Before he could finish, a deafening explosion cut him off.
The Great Toad Sage urged them quickly.
"Go!"
Fukasaku and Shima bowed deeply to him, then leapt to Jiraiya's shoulders and activated a long-prepared reverse summoning technique.
The Great Toad Sage slowly left his seat.
"My calamity has come…"
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My P@treon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][[email protected]/euridome]
[Thank You For Your Support!]